Demanding buyer

I have a potential buyer for a gold & pearl brooch. Itâ€™s 20% off right now. They asked for more off. I said no. They asked me to upload a video. I tried. As far as I can tell, eBay doesnâ€™t let you upload videos in messages or to the listing, through the app or website.

The mark on this piece is very hard to see. I needed my loupe and still wasnâ€™t sure so I took it to my jeweler, who is GIA certified. He said itâ€™s 10k with cultured pearls. I believe him, not just because heâ€™s GIA trained, but heâ€™s been in business for 30 years and has a stellar reputation. He would have told me if it wasnâ€™t gold. Heâ€™s never hesitated to tell me the truth before.
I looked up feedback on potential buyer. There is none and they are based in China. The last time I sold gold to someone in China, it didnâ€™t go smoothly. I can take the brooch down, thatâ€™s the only way I know to stop them from buying it, but Iâ€™m wondering what you would do.

thanks.

vammy151

1220 View listings

Posted 11 months ago·Last reply 11 months ago

11 comments

vammy151

OP11 months ago

1220 View listings

Hanks for the advice everyone. Much appreciated. I think maybe blocking China is a good idea. I did have one person who it said was in China, but the shipping address was Seattle. That person gave me a hard time. Maybe checking feedback on the buyer is a good idea. I did that with this person, but there was none. I know I donâ€™t always remember to leave feedback about the buyer. I will start making sure I do that. The only buyers Iâ€™ve ever had trouble with were in China. Not all Chinese buyers, but a few. Yeahâ€¦ Iâ€™ll just stop shipping there. Sellers in India is a whole other issue.. wonâ€™t go into that in this thread. Thanks again everyone. Much appreciated.

gurlcat

·11 months ago

1969 View listings

@vammy151 wrote:
Hanks for the advice everyone. Much appreciated. I think maybe blocking China is a good idea. I did have one person who it said was in China, but the shipping address was Seattle. That person gave me a hard time. Maybe checking feedback on the buyer is a good idea. I did that with this person, but there was none. I know I donâ€™t always remember to leave feedback about the buyer. I will start making sure I do that. The only buyers Iâ€™ve ever had trouble with were in China. Not all Chinese buyers, but a few. Yeahâ€¦ Iâ€™ll just stop shipping there. Sellers in India is a whole other issue.. wonâ€™t go into that in this thread. Thanks again everyone. Much appreciated.

Block Chinese buyers if you want, I'll be glad to take 'em! You can have the entitled toddler-esque American ones I've dealt with.

But just so you know: You can set your shipping preferences to block addresses in China .... not Chinese people, or people you think are Chinese, but with American addresses, even if it's a freight forwarding business. You WILL get these orders sometimes, and if you just refuse to ship to them and cancel the paid orders, it would violate eBay policy. Also just plain racist, so ... I wouldn't blame them for giving you scorching negative feedback for that (yes, cancelled buyers can leave feedback, if you didn't know).

chapeau-noir

·11 months ago

Radicalized by decency6558 View listings

@vammy151 wrote:
Hanks for the advice everyone. Much appreciated. I think maybe blocking China is a good idea. I did have one person who it said was in China, but the shipping address was Seattle. That person gave me a hard time. Maybe checking feedback on the buyer is a good idea. I did that with this person, but there was none. I know I donâ€™t always remember to leave feedback about the buyer. I will start making sure I do that. The only buyers Iâ€™ve ever had trouble with were in China. Not all Chinese buyers, but a few. Yeahâ€¦ Iâ€™ll just stop shipping there. Sellers in India is a whole other issue.. wonâ€™t go into that in this thread. Thanks again everyone. Much appreciated.

I wouldn't block all Chinese buyers, but I'd block THIS one for the same reason I'd block anybody else with these various demands.

(The Seattle address may be a relation or whatever - we have a large, well-established and longstanding Chinese-American/Chinese national population here).

But, go with your gut.

12345jamesstamps

·11 months ago

8687 View listings

'I looked up feedback on potential buyer'...buyer can be using a 'guest account.

So blocking buyer doesn't always help...they can do another account as a guest.

Best to look also at location of buyer's country...even 'freight forward' anything.

I gave up on China...got too many buyer's addresses in Chinese and not in English.

And years ago got items supposedly lost in the mail.

I even had one send me photos of item (damaged) and wanted a refund.

I sent back my original photos vs. theirs and they were not the same...buyer ended 'ghosting me'...LOL

chapeau-noir

·11 months ago

Radicalized by decency6558 View listings

I've had regular customers in China, but they're nice people and don't make strange demands. Also, what I sell isn't exactly fraud-worthy.

tinsoldierunderground

·11 months ago

638 View listings

FWIW, I wouldn't deal with a buyer or seller in China... These boards are chock full of threads describing tales of woe.

chapeau-noir

·11 months ago

Radicalized by decency6558 View listings

Cease any communication and block them.

Also, when it gets to the point where people are demanding videos, it's time to pull the plug.

fern*wood

·11 months ago

10492 View listings

Are you selling through ebay international shipping program? That's the only way I will consider an international sale.

bonanza125

·11 months ago

8794 View listings

Block this buyer immediately. They will just be a problem if you were to have a transaction with them.

heckofagame

·11 months ago

13311 View listings

I agree with @jonathanbrightlight . Block that buyer.

jonathanbrightlight

·11 months ago

0 View listings

You can add them to your Blocked Buyer List. Anytime a customer gets demanding about something like that, it's probably a wise move.

https://www.ebay.com/bmgt/BuyerBlock